American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of

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American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation

NEW YORK TIMESÂ BESTSELLER â€¢ Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham revealsÂ how the Founding Fathers viewed faithâ€”and how they ultimately created a nation in which belief in God is a matter of choice.

At a time when our country seems divided by extremism, American Gospel draws on the past to offer a new perspective. Meacham re-creates the fascinating history of a nation grappling with religion and politicsâ€“from John Winthropâ€™s â€œcity on a hillâ€ sermon to Thomas Jeffersonâ€™s Declaration of Independence; from the Revolution to the Civil War; from a proposed nineteenth-century Christian Amendment to the Constitution to Martin Luther King, Jr.â€™s call for civil rights; from George Washington to Ronald Reagan.

Debates about religion and politics are often more divisive than illuminating. Secularists point to a â€œwall of separation between church and state,â€ while many conservatives act as though the Founding Fathers were apostles in knee britches. As Meacham shows in this brisk narrative, neither extreme has it right. At the heart of the American experiment lies the God of what Benjamin Franklin called â€œpublic religion,â€ a God who invests all human beings with inalienable rights while protecting private religion from government interference. It is a great American balancing act, and it has served us well.

Meacham has written and spoken extensively about religion and politics, and he brings historical authority and a sense of hope to the issue. American Gospel makes it compellingly clear that the nationâ€™s best chance of summoning what Lincoln called â€œthe better angels of our natureâ€ lies in recovering the spirit and sense of the Founding. In looking back, we may find the light to lead us forward.

Praise for American Gospel

â€œIn his American Gospel, Jon Meacham provides a refreshingly clear, balanced, and wise historical portrait of religion and American politics at exactly the moment when such fairness and understanding are much needed. Anyone who doubts the relevance of history to our own time has only to read this exceptional book.â€â€”David McCullough, author of 1776

â€œJon Meacham has given us an insightful and eloquent account of the spiritual foundation of the early days of the American republic. It is especially instructive reading at a time when the nation is at once engaged in and deeply divided on the question of religion and its place in public life.â€â€”Tom Brokaw, author of The Greatest Generation
Country USA
Brand RANDOM HOUSE GROUP
Manufacturer Random House Trade Paperbacks
Binding Paperback
ItemPartNumber 9780812976663
Color Multicolor
ReleaseDate 2007-03-20
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780812976663

Country	USA
Brand	RANDOM HOUSE GROUP
Manufacturer	Random House Trade Paperbacks
Binding	Paperback
ItemPartNumber	9780812976663
Color	Multicolor
ReleaseDate	2007-03-20
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780812976663

American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation

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